HEART PROTECTION: CHAPTER 37
Yesterday, the fox demons couldn't be saved. The dragon horns also couldn't be obtained. Yan Hui and Tian Yao returned with their tails in between their legs.
Yan Hui mulled over it. She felt like she had to go back one more time, but with Zhenren Su Ying keeping watch over Heavenly Fragrance, Yan Hui didn't dare casually use ghosts as a shield and stroll in again.
If they accidentally met again like yesterday, she feared there would be no lucky escape this time around.
The second day, early in the morning, Yan Hui went to find Xian Ge.
This day, Xian Ge was up early. One hand held a tea cup. The other hand held a slip of paper, which she carefully read.
When Yan Hui pushed open the door, she happened to see Xian Ge raise her tea cup to her lips. Xian Ge's lips lightly rubbed against the cup, but she didn't drink. She was focused on that piece of paper, unintentionally revealing an alluring and charming gaze.
"Xian Ge'er." Yan Hui's call finally caused Xian Ge's naturally misty eyes to move from the paper to Yan Hui. Yan Hui bounded over a few steps and sat down by Xian Ge's side. Yan Hui mischievously joked: "Hey, when men see such a beauty like you, how can they like another woman? If I were a man, there's no need to use the lust fragrance on me. Just one look from you, and I'd fall in love."
Xian Ge laughed: "You're such a sweet talker. If you were a man, you would trick all the girls in the world and eat them up." Xian Ge glanced at Yan Hui. "Your sidekick is unexpectedly not with you today."
"Sidekick? He's clearly a follower I can't get rid of. He's injured right now and resting in the room. I didn't call him to come with me."
"Injured?"
Yan Hui sighed: "Yesterday, we went to Heavenly Fragrance to investigate. In the end, we bumped into Zhenren Su Ying. Nothing was accomplished, and Tian Yao got hurt."
"Then he'll need to recover," said Xian Ge. She waved the paper in her hand. "But don't think of it as nothing was accomplished. At least, my spy was successfully planted."
Looking at the paper in Xian Ge's hand, Yan Hui was stunned.
Xian Ge continued: "The ruckus you made in the courtyard yesterday gave me this chance."
"Very good......" Yan Hui picked up on the current situation and immediately responded: "You knew from the start that Zhenren Su Ying was at Heavenly Fragrance and purposely didn't tell me, so I would make the matter worse. I would attract their attention, which let you place your spy in Heavenly Fragrance!"
Xian Ge didn't hide it, nodding her head in admittance: "With your words, it does seem upsetting. I took the initiative to conceal our scheme. Zhenren Su Ying is also a mediator between xian sects. If she found out your identity, I believe she wouldn't make things too difficult for you."
True......if Yan Hui was the only one there, it was possible Zhenren Su Ying wouldn't make things difficult. But she was with Tian Yao......
But thinking about it, Xian Ge was right.
Xian Ge didn't know about the conflict between Su Ying and Tian Yao. Furthermore, she also gave Tian Yao the amnosia sachet. Su Ying was the head of a xian sect. Su Ying wouldn't go overboard when dealing with an ordinary xian disciple. That's why according to Xian Ge's understanding, this kind of arrangement wasn't cruel.
But......
"You used me just like that." Yan Hui pouted. She was a little unhappy. "If you had a scheme, then tell me. How do you know if I wouldn't mesh in? Doing it like that, what if a hiccup happened? Did you consider that Zhenren Su Ying would see me releasing demons, think I was a xian traitor, and actually kill me? Even if Su Ying didn't kill me, what if Feng Ming discovered me and killed me?"
Even if they didn't kill her and killed Tian Yao instead......
How wronged he would be. He struggled without anymore left to give, just to grasp an temporary gasp of breath for 20 years. And it was nearly extinguished as a side-thought just like that.
Xian Ge thought about it: "I believe in you."
"......" Yan Hui silently looked at Xian Ge for a long time. "For the sake of your beauty, I'll restrain myself from hitting you."
Xian Ge laughed in spite of herself: "Don't be angry. Even if Zhenren Su Ying wasn't there, you two still might not be able to rescue them from under Feng Ming's grasp." Xian Ge waved the paper in her hand. "Didn't you want to investigate the entirety of this matter? Rushing in like that, you can't find out anything." Her lips twitched up in a smile. "Come, my person already helped you investigate it. It all relied on the ruckus you caused yesterday."
Yan Hui hurriedly snatched the paper over. She sighed: "As expected, it has to do with her reincarnated lover."
Turns out, the reincarnated lover that Su Ying spent so much effort into finding didn't like her at all. Su Ying became mad and somehow found out this immoral recipe for Feng Ming to refine.
Yan Hui slapped the paper down on the table. She was somewhat furious: "What does she mean, killing so many fox demons to force someone that doesn't like her to like her?"
Xian Ge sipped some tea. She pondered over it before evenly saying: "I've investigated Zhenren Su Ying's past before. There are many rumors about her in the jianghu. Some save she loved a demon. Some say she loved your Chen Xing Mountain's Zhenren Qing Guang. Most rumors are anything but the truth. However, I have the most truthful one."
Yan Hui tapped her finger on the table: "Tell me."
"About 20 years ago, Zhenren Su Ying cultivated incorrectly. It caused her channels to reverse. Her xian magic was completely lost. She was saved by a mortal general in the wilderness. The two had an instant attraction and were completely in love. Then, Central Plains went to war against Northern Rong. The general went to battle and was seriously hurt. To save him, Zhenren Su Ying exhausted all methods. In the end, the general still passed in death to Yellow Springs."
Yan Hui rubbed her chin in thought. Considering this information, the timeline was pretty much the same as what Tian Yao said. Twenty years ago when he met Zhenren Su Ying, she was probably looking everywhere under the sky for a method to save the general. As a result, she came up with the idea for dragon scale armor, and Tian Yao would provide......
The dragon scale armor failed to form in the end because of the heart protection scale in Yan Hui's chest. That's why the general died.
Yan Hui rubbed where her heart was, feeling the steady beat of her heart. Her mood was complex.
"And this year, exactly less than 6 months ago, Zhenren Su Ying actually found the reincarnation of the general."
Yan Hui shook her head: "According to some, reincarnation is a mystery that cannot be solved. Who would know who became who? Is it by looking at the nose or eyes? That's how you recognize a son or daughter." Yan Hui curled her lip. "Zhenren Su Ying's belief isn't reliable."
"There's no use in you saying it isn't reliable. Zhenren Su Ying seriously believes the person she found is the reincarnation of the general." Xian Ge continued. "In this timeline, the general became a scholar called Lu Mu Sheng. He has a gentle disposition. Before he met Zhenren Su Ying, Lu Mu Sheng already liked someone, but what kind of person Zhenren Su Ying is needs no explanation. She directly took Lu Mu Sheng to Guang Han Sect. He cannot leave. There is no chance for him to go back to the life he had before."
Yan Hui couldn't hold it in and said: "Raising a dog......"
"Lu Mu Sheng and you have about the same feeling." Xian Ge took a sip of tea. "That's why after all these months, there's no news of Lu Mu Sheng being moved by Zhenren Su Ying's situation and accepting her."
"Who would accept that kind of love....."
"Exactly, who would accept that kind of love." Xian Ge lowered her eyes. "But because her disposition is too unyielding and Zhenren Su Ying can't think of another method, she decided to use this kind of drug. In the early stages, it's experimental drugs. Large amounts of fox demon blood is needed. Many xian sects want a good relationship with Guang Han Sect. Since this also includes killing demons, a lot of xian sects are participating. However, a large portion might not know what Guang Han Sect is doing with all these fox demons."
"Experiments?" Yan Hui frowned. "You're saying the fox lust fragrance being made and sold for sky-high prices right now are just experimental?"
Xian Ge nodded. She took back the paper from Yan Hui and sprinkled some tea on it. Another two lines of words immediately appeared on the paper.
"Genuine fox lust fragrance must have the blood of a nine-tailed fox demon to successfully refine."
Yan Hui heard and stayed silent.
Killing fox demons was one matter. Killing nine-tailed fox demons was another matter. That was the demon race's royal family. The demon race attached great importance to bloodlines. If the nine-tailed fox clan was offended, it might lead to war between the demons and xian.
"Su Ying......" Yan Hui couldn't help but become grave. "She couldn't have gone crazy to this degree, right?"
"I don't know." Xian Ge pushed the paper into the teacup until it became saturated. The ink completely mixed in with the tea. "But there is something to rejoice about. They still haven't obtained the genuine fox lust fragrance."
"That's also good news for you." Xian Ge laughed. "The current lust fragrance, depending on the dosage, will have differing levels of attraction. Looking at your reaction, you only have a shallow love for that follower. There's no need to look for an antidote. After a few days, the effect of the lust fragrance will be gone."
That indeed was good news. Yan Hui was already fed up with her blushing self when looking at Tian Yao.
It really wasn't dashing at all.
"Enough, that's just minor stuff." Yan Hui turned the conversation back around. "Even though I now know the entire chain of events, I still have to save those fox demons. Xian Ge, are you going to help me or not?"
Tian Yao's dragon horns also needed to be taken. Otherwise, today she would rescue the fox demons, but the next day, they would capture more fox demons to replace them. Yan Hui's actions would be a temporary fix but not the solution. It was just like when she saved Bai Xiao Lu from Chen Xing Mountain, a waste of effort.
Xian Ge calmly drank her tea. Then she slowly raised her charming eyes: "Not helping you. Then what was the point of hurriedly planting a spy in Heavenly Fragrance?" She put down the cup. "But we can discuss this matter after your little follower has recovered. In these two days, I see that Zhenren Su Ying, herself, will have some troublesome matters."
Thinking of yesterday's events where Zhenren Su Ying hurriedly fled with the female disciple, Yan Hui nodded her head. She got up: "Since your spy has been planted, then information should keep coming in for the next few days. We probably alerted the culprits yesterday. Laying low for a few days will be good. Then, I'll go back now."
"Go ahead."
When Xian Ge said those words, a maid came in from the outside. She held a letter in her hands: "Madame, the clan leader sent a latter."
Yan Hui's gaze swept over the letter. "Xian Ge's eyes only" was written on it in bold calligraphy, revealing the sender's strong personality. Yan Hui turned her head to sneak another glance. She saw Xian Ge take the letter from the maid. Even though Xian Ge tried to mask her actions, Yan Hui saw Xian Ge's movement's were not as serene as usual.
Xian Ge started to read the letter. It was like she entered another world. She no longer paid attention to her surroundings.
Yan Hui silently left. While she was closing the doors to the room, she heard Xian Ge speak with a somewhat excited, school-girl tone: "Clan Leader will come in person to Wang Yu Luo in a few days. Start preparing the welcome."
"Yes......"
Yan Hui closed the door. She sighed. Xian Ge, oh Xian Ge. Qi Jue Group's leader, Feng Qian Shuo, has one hundred concubines. It could be said he is a famous womanizer......
What do you like about him......
She sighed again. Suddenly, Yan Hui felt a pair of eyes staring at her. She turned her head to look. It was Tian Yao, leaning against the wall for support.
Yan Hui only looked at him and felt her heart start to beat faster. She hurriedly looked away. She walked down the steps while saying: "Looks like the anosmia sachet is really useful. How long have you been eavesdropping outside? I didn't sense you at all. What did you come here to do?"
Tian Yao opened his mouth. He wanted to say he didn't see Yan Hui when he woke up early this mornin, so he searched the entire courtyard for her. A maid told him where Yan Hui was, so he went over without even thinking.
But those words were stuck in this throat. He remembered just then when Yan Hui called him a "follower". Tian Yao thought about it.......then he swallowed down those words.
Fortunately, Yan Hui didn't follow up with her question. Tian Yao didn't answer, so Yan Hui skipped over it. She strode in front of Tian Yao and spoke with a solemn expression to talk about the pressing matter: "How much did you hear of my conversation with Xian Ge?"
"I heard it all."
"Oh." Yan Hui thought about it. "Oh, then there's nothing to explain to you. Next up, since we're free for a few days, think about what we need to do."